Investors chew over US jobs report, dollar index steady

Katie Martin has the latest on markets on Monday, including investors continuing to chew over the US jobs report, the dollar index firm but steady and the wave of geopolitical nerves — that fired up havens like bonds and gold last week — calming down.

Transcript

- From the FT in London, here's the latest on markets. Investors continue to chew over the US jobs report released on Friday. The headline number appeared grim, with the economy adding around half the number of jobs that had been expected, but unemployment continues to sink. Add in the fact that a steady stream of rate rises from the US is already baked into markets and there's little scope for market moves in response to the data. The dollar index is firm but steady, with sterling for example, stuck at around $1.24.

Moving on broadly, the wave of geopolitical nerves that fired up havens like bonds and gold last week has come down. The Yen, for example, has pulled back, but Korean markets have been jolted, with stocks falling the most in a month after the US deployed an aircraft carrier group to the region's waters after North Korea's recent missile test.

In Europe, fresh figures for February suggest Japanese investors remain concerned about the French election, shedding the debt again this time at a record pace. Meanwhile the Czech Koruna continues to creep higher after the upper limit on the currency was scrapped late last week. But creeping is the word, this looks like a smooth Czexit strategy.